Saturday, March 8, 2014

Level-2 Lookalike Firearm

I'm pretty sure by now most of you have read about the 10 year old boy in Ohio who was suspended from elementary school for three days for brandishing a "level-2 lookalike firearm." And what was this horrific weapon?

It was the kid's hand, thumb upright and index finger extended.

It is official. The world around us has completely taken leave of it's senses.

The longer we allow this stupidity to continue, the more we are losing our ability to defend ourselves. I am not advocating shooting up the streets as if we lived in the Old West. But when children are taught that any reference to guns is terribly wrong, we are creating a generation of wusses who will not only drink the Kool-aid but will passively line up for the privilege.

Those who wish to see all firearms removed are strong advocates of calling 911 for help when the bad guys break into our homes. Let me tell you a little story about how well that works.

Close to six years ago, on a mild summer evening, I walked the two blocks to our local library. When I returned about an hour later, I found my husband laying on our bed, and he wasn't breathing. I grabbed the phone, called 911 and started CPR. According to the clock in my bedroom, it took over 15 minutes for the first officers to arrive.

I have nothing but good things to say about our police department. They were kind and courteous. They kept me informed about what the paramedics were doing to help my husband, and when it was obvious that all attempts to revive him had failed, they were gentle and kind in telling me. In the following days, one of the officers made a point to check on me to see that I was doing alright. One of these same officers rescued my dogs last summer when an apartment in my building caught fire.

My point is this. It took over 15 minutes to respond to a 911 call for a man who wasn't breathing. I now live alone. It wouldn't take much to kick in an apartment door. How much damage do you suppose someone could do to my home and to me in 15 minutes time if I were deprived of the means to defend myself.

When my kids were young, there were gun safety classes for those who wanted to hunt. I don't know if those classes still exist. If they don't, we should be teaching our children how to safely handle a firearm, taking them out to practice and seeing to it that they understand that a gun is a tool - for adding to the family's supply of meat - for defending our homes and our loved ones from those who want to hurt us or take from us what we have earned.

If we don't find a way to stop the insanity of punishing children for any reference to guns, we might as well crawl into bed, pull the covers over our heads and wait to die. These kids are the future defenders of our families and our nation. I want my grandchildren to know how to defend themselves. I don't want them to come to harm because help was too far away. I want them to be the strong, capable individuals that I know they can be. And I surely don't want them so conditioned to be afraid that they wet themselves when they see a gun.

Honestly I think we are done.When I was in high school it was not uncommon to see shotguns in students pick ups during small game season. Yesterday I heard at the plant which recently came up with a no personal knives policy that they are thinking about getting rid of scissors also.

Bob.....Gun racks in pickups were common when I was young as well. When my family and I lived in northern Minnesota, I would write notes to my oldest son's teacher excusing him from classes to go deer hunting. And I would think that if a person is responsible enough to hold a job, they are responsible enough to carry a pocket knife like Dad did his whole life. Scissors, too? Really? We are nannied to death.

Stephen...Thank you. It is a very sad state of affairs. I fear that the younger generation won't have a clue about how to take care of themselves. One can only hope that there are enough parents who can undo the damage being done.

Duane...I remember the knives that you made, son. They were a work of art. I can't imagine any school allowing that today. But back when you were in high school, students were held responsible for their actions. Love, Mom

About Me

Mom of four and Grandma of six, who writes about family events both past and present as well as anything else that happens to come to mind, shares new photos as well as old and who enjoys life in general.